Davide puts the spot on Fiat 500 Custom Models - Part 20: 500 Abarth Pininfarina

The years between the 1950s and the 1960s marked the decade in which Carlo Abarth was hunting records by tuning original engines and testing them for speed and efficiency after having them “stung by the scorpion”, as people used to say at that time in allusion to Abarth’s brand crest. His intention was to make himself known and arouse the curiosity of motorists, but above all, to gain a reputation as a master tuner. These record-breaking models also included the single-seated 750 Abarth cars from 1956 that were derived from the Fiat 600, but with a tuned version of the original engine.

After already having set numerous records with the 500 saloon on the Monza racetrack, Carlo Abarth launched a 500 model in 1958, designed and built by Pininfarina, that had an extremely aerodynamic body in the shape of a torpedo. The grid-type body frame made of welded steel tubes accommodated the Fiat-built two-cylinder engine, which Abarth had modified by increasing the compression ratio to 10.5 and fitting a Weber 36 IMP carburettor. The engine upgraded by Abarth finally had an output of 36 hp compared to the 13 hp of the original version. Another special feature was the introduction of a cut-off steering wheel to minimise the steering angle and to enable lowering of the driver's seat. This unique car, completed in the summer of 1958, was 4,130 mm long, 1,410 mm wide and 1,200 mm high. With its merely 368 kgs, it was a real lightweight.

On September 22, 1958 the 500 Abarth was ready to hit the Monza racetrack. However, after 5-6 hours, when everything seemed to run smoothly, the car had to return to the pits because of a broken engine mount and a dent in the front section caused by collisions with hares and wild rabbits that had been roaming the track in the night. But Carlo Abarth was not daunted by these initial troubles: Shortly afterwards, he brought the car back to the track, now equipped with a bumper. In the following months, the car was driven by several pilots that took turns at the wheel, breaking a total of 23 speed and endurance records.